Meant to Be
by astroanna
Summary: Aang knows he has been chosen as the Avatar...but what if he never had been?
1. Chapter 1

Twilight had painted the sky a deep, dense, violet as Aang, Sokka, and Katara lay comfortably upon Appa's saddle, making their way over the hills and valleys of the earth kingdom. They were laughing and talking idly, vaguely wondering where they were going to camp for the night. Suddenly, Katara's sharp eyes spotted a strange light amidst the gathering darkness around them. It seemed to be flickering, rising and then falling slowly.

"Look!" Katara said to the other two, pointing into the distance.

"What could that be?" Aang said curiously.

"I don't know, but I have a feeling it's nothing good", said Sokka grimly.

The three continued through the falling night, but it was some time before the small group came close enough to the strange anomaly to realize what it was. It was an earth kingdom village that had gone up in flames; completely destroyed by the fire nation.

As they slowly brought Appa to the ground, they could plainly see that the village had been burning for hours, as there were only a few stray flames left. Finally, Appa landed and Sokka lost no time jumping to the ground, quickly followed by Katara. The two walked along the main road of the small town, Katara putting out any flames they passed with her waterbending. After several long minutes, they came back along the same road. Aang was standing a few feet from Appa, gazing at the destruction around him. His eyes fell on the charred homes and the ruined streets, but mostly they remained on the victims. All around him were bodies of the old, the young, men and women. It was death on a scale beyond anything Aang had ever seen before.

"Oh, man", Sokka said softly, taking in the grisly sight.

"This is awful", Katara agreed, tears slipping down her cheeks.

Aang, however, had not spoken. In fact, his gaze was still fixed on the ruins around them and he was shaking slightly, his hands clenched into fists at his side.

"Aang?" Katara asked quietly, concern evident in her voice.

"He just needs a second, Katara. This has to be a huge shock." Sokka sighed heavily.

"We should probably get out of here", he said, his voice slightly hoarse as he started toward Appa. Katara began to follow her brother when Aang's voice stopped them both in their tracts.

"I should have been here", Aang said, in a voice that was hard and quite unlike his own.

"What?" Katara said in confusion, turning to look at Aang. Slowly, Aang turned toward Sokka and Katara, his face twisted in anguish, his eyes filled with tears.

"I'm the Avatar, I should have stopped this".

"Aang, no", Katara began, "there's no way you could have known..."

Before she could continue, however, a strong wind began to blow which kicked up the dust and debris around them. It was another instant before Sokka and Katara realized what was happening. Aang's eyes, which had been filled with tears only moments before, were now glowing pure white. The blowing wind then gradually faded, leaving Aang standing before Sokka and Katara, but he was no longer really there. The Avatar state had taken hold of him.


	2. Chapter 2

Aang looked around wildly, at first not knowing where he was. He quickly recognized his surroundings, though. A pang of grief gripped him as he looked at the graceful spirals and magnificent pillars of the southern air temple. He felt, for that one instant, that he was home again. It was as well-kept and beautiful as he remembered it, so he knew he was not at the real air temple. He had visited the air temple months before and it had fallen into complete disrepair. "Why am I here?" he said aloud, unable to stop himself. "What's going on?"

Not expecting an answer, Aang jumped when a familiar voice spoke right behind him.

"To learn the next lesson in your journey, young Avatar."

Aang spun around, reflexively falling into a defensive posture before he recognized who had spoken.

"Roku," Aang said in surprise, "what are you doing here? What am I doing here?"

"You are in the Avatar state, Aang. We seem to see a lot of each other here, don't we?" Roku said, an uncharacteristic note of amusement in his voice.

"What is the last thing you remember, Aang?"

"We were flying over an earth kingdom village. The fire nation had burned it to the ground. I-I've never seen anything like that before". Aang began to pace, agitated, as if he could not bring himself to stand still. "I don't think I can do this anymore, Roku. I'm supposed to be the Avatar! I couldn't even save one town, how am I supposed to save the whole world?"

"That is a question I cannot answer. Every Avatar must find their own way. I can tell you one thing, though. You being chosen as Avatar was no accident, Aang. It was meant to be the way it is."

Aang sighed, shaking his head.

"You know, that's what everyone keeps telling me. What does that even mean, Roku? How would anything be different if someone else had been chosen as the Avatar? Someone else would probably have been able to avoid this war completely."

"You think so?" Roku said, his voice hardening. "Come with me, young Avatar. You have much to learn."

Before Aang knew what was happening, he and Roku were falling through darkness. Aang tried to scream, but no sound came out. Then, suddenly, they were once again on solid ground. In fact, they were standing exactly where they had begun except for one, immediately noticeable, difference. Before, they had been standing in a completely deserted air temple. Now, the temple was crowded with dozens of airbenders, lemurs, bison. It was as if Aang had been taken back to a different, more innocent time. He would soon learn how right that impression was. Aang spotted a familiar figure amidst the crowd and smiled at the sight of him.

"Gyatso!" Aang called, waving. He missed his old mentor very much and often wished he still had the guidance of the wizened airbender. Gyatso, however, did not reply. In fact, he did not react at all when Aang had called his name.

"Gyatso!" Aang called again.

"No one can hear us, Aang", Roku said quietly.

"Why not?"

"We've crossed into a different realm, Aang. One where we can see all the different ways your life, and the world, would be different if you were not the Avatar."


	3. Chapter 3

Aang shook his head in confusion.

"I don't understand. Why are you showing me this?"

"Because you need to know, Aang. You need to believe that you were chosen as the Avatar for a reason. That your life is meant to be the way it is, difficult and confusing as it sometimes can be."

Aang nodded, still somewhat confused but willing, for the time being, to see what Roku wanted to show him. Before either Roku or Aang could say anything more, a peal of lighthearted laughter caught the young Avatar's attention.

Across the main square of the temple he saw Gyatso once more and, strangely enough, he saw himself as well. He was playing with his friends and Gyatso was standing to one side, watching with a smile on his wizened face. The only thing that was different as he watched was that this alternate self did not have the blue arrow tattoos that marked a master airbender. He could see one thing quite plainly, however. This Aang was happy, carefree, and clearly had never seen war or death. Aang would have given anything, in that moment, to go back to that simpler time.

"Is this it?" Aang asked bitterly, turning to Roku. "Is this what I've come here to see? A life in which I'm happy and Gyatso is still alive?"

"Keep watching, young Avatar."

As Aang watched, a strange sound could be heard in the distance. Slowly, he recognized it as footsteps; the unmistakably precise footsteps of marching soldiers. Gradually the elder monks came to recognize the sound too and gathered all the children into the innermost section of the temple. By the time the fire nation soldiers reached the air temple, only the master airbenders were there to meet them. One of the soldiers stepped forward, clearly the leader of the battalion behind him.

"So," he said, his voice sending a chill down Aang's spine, "where is the Avatar?"

Suddenly the scene disappeared and Aang turned to Roku, just as confused as ever.

"What happened next?" he asked, curiosity overcoming his fear.

"I did not want you to witness it, Aang. The Avatar after me, Aang, was always meant to be an airbender, I trust you know this."

Aang nodded.

"It's the next nation in the Avatar cycle."

"Precisely. So the Avatar in this realm is not you, but another airbender. An infant, in fact."

"The Avatar is a baby?"

"At this moment in history, yes. So when the fire nation invaded the temple, they found the infant."

Aang shuddered, his stomach dropping with the thought of what the fire nation would have done.

"Did they…."

"No, Aang, they did not kill the child. That would have defeated their purpose. The Avatar would have been reborn yet again as a waterbender and the entire exercise would have been futile. They took the child to the fire nation and made sure he never learned of his true purpose. Not until it was much too late."

Aang was silent for several long moments.

"And the rest of the airbenders?"

"They were killed, just like in the life you're leading."

Aang shook his head. His voice was shaking when he spoke.

"But why? Why does the fire nation invade the temple in the first place?"

"It is simply fire lord Sozen's bid for power. It comes at this moment in history no matter what else changes."

"But what about the Avatar in this realm? He's still alive, right?"

"But he is brought up and trained in the fire nation, Aang, as a firebender. He does not learn that he is the Avatar. He is loyal to the fire nation and helps them gain power over the other nations."

"But…" Aang was desperate now, "the Avatar doesn't live forever. He's mortal. Eventually an Avatar would have been born into the water tribe."

"Ordinarily, yes. Except that this Avatar does not die an ordinary death. One day, when he was in one of the final battles of the war he triggered the Avatar State. It was completely unconscious on his part, much as it was with you. Unfortunately, one of the earthbender soldiers he was fighting at the time took advantage of his loss of awareness. Because he did not know he was dealing with the Avatar he did what a soldier in a time of war does. The Avatar died that day, Aang, while in the Avatar State."

Aang's breath caught in his chest. Roku had told him what would happen if the Avatar were to be killed in the Avatar State.

"So then…"

"Yes, Aang. The line of Avatars is broken then. The world falls under the rule of the fire nation and without the Avatar to keep balance there is chaos."

Author's note: Sorry this took so long to get up... I think there'll be one or two more installments...


	4. Chapter 4

Aang could not speak for several long minutes. When Roku had told him of the brutal way in which the Avatar cycle could be broken, he had never imagined it could ever really happen. But it seemed, without himself as Avatar, it could.

No, thought Aang, confusion still clouding his mind, it would happen. Roku suddenly spoke into Aang's dejected thoughts.

"Do not imagine it is only the nameless and faceless masses whose lives you have touched, Aang. The ones you know…and love, their lives would have been very different without you, as well."

"What do you mean?" Aang said, a wave of dread dropping through his stomach as he thought of Katara and Sokka.

"Would you like to see?" Roku asked gently.

Aang nodded, a part of him desperately wanting to see what Roku had to show him. There was another part of him, however, one that dreaded what he would see more than he ever thought possible.

Suddenly Aang, along with Roku, was falling through darkness once again and this time when he opened his eyes he was in a very different place from the one he had left. It took him several moments but Aang soon recognized where he was. He had only been here once before, but it was where his entire life had changed. He was in Katara and Sokka's village in the southern Water Tribe. It was here he had met his best friends and Aang could not help but smile, despite himself, when he remembered how Katara had taught him to catch penguins. It seemed like a different time, somehow. A different life.

"Where are they?" Aang asked Roku?

"Your friends are there, on that pier," Roku replied softly.

Aang looked, and quickly spotted Sokka and Katara. He knew better than to try to call out to them, but his brow furrowed in confusion when he noticed something odd. Aang was used to seeing Sokka in his warm, functional, blue water tribe coat. Now, though, he was outfitted with his arrow quiver, his boomerang, and donned the gray and white war paint Aang had seen him wearing only once before.

He was standing next to an older man, well built, handsome, but grave, who Aang knew must be Sokka's father. He also wore the traditional water tribe soldier's attire. As Aang's eyes sought out Katara, he was shocked to see that her face was pale and wan, and that her eyes were bloodshot, as though she had just been weeping.

"What's going on?" Aang asked, a ripple of fear now penetrating the confusion he felt.

"This is when Sokka and Katara's father, Hakoda, leaves for the earth kingdom. To fight in the war against the fire nation."

"But Sokka doesn't go with him. He's too young."

Roku shook his head sadly.

"There is no other option in this realm, young Aang. Even one as young as fourteen, for that is how old Sokka is, must go to the front lines. They will not send him into the actual fighting for some time, of course, but they start his training now."

"So….Katara's left here all by herself?"

"Yes, Aang. And that's not all. Without a way to leave her water tribe, she never masters waterbending. She manages to teach herself some bending, of course. She is a clever girl."

Aang could not help but smile at that.

"Yeah, she is."

Aang's smile quickly faded, however, as another thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Roku tell me. What happens to them…in the end?"

Roku looked down and was silent. It seemed that he, who Aang had always known to maintain perfect control, was now at a loss.

"They…die, don't they?" Aang said, his voice a hoarse whisper.

"They are your friends, Aang, and they are the same people you know now. You know that they fight valiantly to the last. Without mastering waterbending, though, Katara is able to mount little resistance and her village quickly falls. Hakoda and Sokka fight against the fire nation side by side for some time, but eventually they become prisoners of war. They both perish in the attempt to free themselves and their fellow soldiers. Aang, I'm-"

"No!" Aang said, his voice unnaturally harsh. "No more. I can't take it anymore."

Aang tried, tried with all his might, but could not banish the image of Katara fighting a losing battle against an invading fire nation army. He could see in his mind's eye Sokka's face, covered in war paint and with eyes hardened by years of war, as he lead the soldiers in a last-ditch escape attempt. It did not surprise him that even without him his friends turned out to be brave and loyal people…people who died young. Died much too young.

Before he even knew what was happening Aang was seated on the ground, though he could not remember having sat down. His face was buried in his hands and his eyes were shut tight, as if trying to block out the images but they simply kept coming.

He could imagine, even welcome, a world in which he was not the Avatar. He could imagine a world in which he did not even exist. In the part of himself that he never spoke of, never revealed to anyone, he would even be glad of it. But a world in which his friends were gone, in which their young lives were cut short by the fire nation, that was something Aang could not bear. Soon enough he found himself unable to hold back the wracking sobs.


	5. Chapter 5

Eventually Aang opened his eyes, wiping forcefully at the last stray tears. Standing up, he took a deep and cleansing breath and looked up at Roku.

"I know now why you showed me the things you did, Roku, but it still doesn't help me."

"What do you mean, Aang?"

"I mean that how do I go back, Roku? How do I go back and be the Avatar? I don't think I know how."

"Do you suppose that any Avatar before you ever really did? Do you suppose that I did? Being the Avatar takes time and experience to understand, Aang, and even the best teaching doesn't fully prepare the Avatar for what he or she must face. But that is why you have us, Aang, the other Avatars. We are a part of you but we have also been the Avatar in our own right and can help you."

"But I-"

"You also have the instinct and heart that is the birthright of every Avatar. Trust that Aang. Trust in yourself. And trust in your friends as well. Their role in your life is not chance, either. You will need their strength, Aang, and the power they give you."

"Power?"

"Aang if I am to help you, you must be honest with me and talk to me without embarrassment. Tell me what you feel when you think of your friends."

Aang was silent for a long moment, unsure how to respond at first. The words poured from him, though, when his friends' faces appeared in his mind.

"I love my friends. They're the only family I have."

Roku nodded.

"That's power, Aang. Love is power. Perhaps you do not understand that yet but you will, as you grow older."

Aang nodded, but did not speak. He seemed to stare past Roku absentmindedly, not really seeing anything.

"But that is not what you wanted to hear, is it young Avatar?"

"What do you mean?" Aang said, now looking at Roku.

"You came here through your unconscious mind, Aang, but there is a part of you that wanted…needed to come here. Needed some kind of absolution or consolation for what you saw."

Aang looked down. It was not necessary to say so, but Aang knew that what Roku said was true.

"There is no shame in that, Aang. You're human and what's more, you're still a child. There are some things a child should not see, some things a child cannot handle. It does not make you weak or a less capable airbender, or Avatar for that matter. But there is something you must understand. You cannot save every life, Aang. You cannot right every wrong. No Avatar can. Mourn loss of life, Aang, as every decent human being does. Fight against injustice, as every Avatar does. But do not expect to be omniscient or more than human. A very special human, to be sure, but a human nonetheless."

Aang did not speak, for he could not find the words. It was strange how Roku's words were not exactly comforting, yet Aang could not help but feel a weight lifted from him. Roku was smiling slightly and Aang could not help but smile, too.

Suddenly Aang felt like he was falling once more and his eyes flew open. He gasped for breath as he looked around him. He was back in the earth kingdom village and Sokka and Katara were in front of him with identical looks of concern on both their faces.

"Aang?" Katara said quietly, "are you okay?"

He looked into her eyes, blue, warm and familiar and was comforted by the sight of his best friend. He saw a brave and beautiful young woman and knew he would do anything to protect her.

He looked at Sokka and saw a loyal and courageous soldier and friend. Sarcastic and goofy he might be but Aang knew in that moment there was no one else he would rather have at his side in his fight, or in his life.

He looked at them both silently for a long time and then, without a word, wrapped his arms around both of them. It was an unexpected motion that caught them both off-guard but they both returned the embrace.

They both knew something had changed within the young Avatar but neither felt it right to ask what had happened. Not yet. As Aang pulled away from them he felt a swell of love for his friends. No, he thought, his family.

Looking around him he saw that the chaos that had permeated the village had calmed and a peaceful dawn was breaking. He glanced once more at his friends and drew a deep breath.

"Let's go, you guys. We have a long way to go before we get to the North Pole."

Author's note: Well, that's it. Just a quick character study, I know and maybe not that great, but there it is...

Later,all!


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